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Two Players Fined By Department Of Player Safety

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After levying an eight-game suspension to Colorado’s Nazem Kadri on Friday night, the Department of Player Safety was busy on Saturday morning, announcing (Twitter links) a pair of fines as Hurricanes center Jordan Staal and Capitals winger Anthony Mantha are both $5K lighter in the wallet.  As always, the money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

Staal was fined for a trip on Nashville winger Luke Kunin during the second period where his right leg caught the back of Kunin’s left leg, causing him to fall backwards onto the ice.  A minor penalty was assessed on the play.  Meanwhile, Mantha was fined for goaltender interference on Boston’s Tuukka Rask.  The incident occurred in the third period when he skated unimpeded into the crease, colliding with the netminder.  Again, a minor penalty was called.

There was one other incident of note from the Boston-Washington game when a high hit from Dmitry Orlov injured Boston’s Kevan Miller, sending him to the hospital.  NHL.com’s Amalie Benjamin reports (Twitter link) that Miller spent the night in the hospital but has since been charged while Samantha Post of the Washington Post tweets that there will be no supplementary discipline forthcoming for Orlov.

Jaccob Slavin To Be A Gametime Decision For A While

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  • Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin was out of the lineup for tonight’s second game against Nashville. As Michael Smith of Carolina’s team website notes (Twitter link), the blueliner will be a game-time decision for a while with Slavin ultimately making the decision on when he’ll be able to suit up.  He suffered a lower-body injury in their final regular season game and clearly, he has not quite recovered from it just yet.

Cedric Paquette Still Dealing With Undisclosed Injury

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  • Hurricanes center Cedric Paquette remains unavailable and was not in the lineup for their opener against Nashville, relays Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer (Twitter link). The 27-year-old last played in late April and has been battling an undisclosed injury since then.  Paquette averaged 4.5 hits per game in Tampa Bay’s Stanley Cup run last season and Carolina will be counting on a similar level of physicality once he’s able to return.

Snapshots: Blues, Varlamov, Hurricanes, Tortorella

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The St. Louis Blues added their third player on the COVID-19 protocol list Saturday when leading scorer David Perron found himself on the list, but so far there are no concerns about cancelling practice or postponing games, according to Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic (subscription required).

“There is always concern when Players or Club staff test positive for COVID-19,” Daly wrote in an email. “The level of concern is always a function of the precise circumstances involved. “At the current time, there is no consideration being given to postponing games.”

The Blues held an optional skate Saturday with many veterans taking a maintenance day off, but flew to Denver after the practice to get ready for their playoff game Monday.

  • Newsday’s Andrew Gross reports that New York Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov will practice again on Monday before a decision is made regarding his status for Game 2. Varlamov missed Game 1 due to a lower-body injury, although head coach Barry Trotz said he was taken out of the lineup due to precautionary reasons. The coach said he had to make a decision Saturday night and chose to take Varlamov totally out of the lineup. Cory Schneider served as the backup to Ilya Sorokin, who led New York to a overtime victory Sunday.
  • Raleigh News & Observer’s Chip Alexander reports that several injured players were back on the ice Sunday for practice, including Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce and Cedric Paquette. Slavin was considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury and sat out the regular season finale. Pesce also sat out the regular season finale with an undisclosed injury. Paquette, on the other hand, had missed the last six games of the season with an undisclosed injury. Carolina faces off against Nashville on Monday.
  • The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required) writes that former Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella, who split with the Blue Jackets more than a week ago, tried to step down from his head coaching position last season. One main reason the veteran coach decided to come back for one final season as coach was due to the urging of Nick Foligno. The captain sat down with the coach and convinced him to give the veteran core one more chance.

Carolina Hurricanes Agree To Terms With Tuukka Tieksola

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Just call them Team Finland. The Carolina Hurricanes have added another forward to their Finnish contingent, agreeing to terms with Tuukka Tieksola on a three-year entry-level contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $823,333 at the NHL level. Hurricanes GM Don Waddell released a short statement on his newest forward:

Tuukka took major strides playing in the top Finnish league this season. He is a dynamic player and we’re excited for him to take the next steps in his development.

Selected 121st in the 2019 draft, Tieksola spent this season with Karpat, his first full year in Liiga, the highest level of hockey in Finland. The tiny forward—listed at just 146-lbs—did well at the professional level, scoring nine goals and 18 points in 37 games.

His size has never held him back to this point, but it will be a challenge for him when he eventually transitions to the North American game. Tieksola’s best skill is his incredible vision when carrying the puck, but managing to avoid physical confrontations will be a challenge as he moves up the ladder.

It will be interesting to see if the Hurricanes want to bring the 19-year-old over right away, or let him continue to develop for the next few seasons in Finland. His contract, which kicks in for the 2021-22 season, will not be slide eligible, meaning he is scheduled for restricted free agency in 2024 regardless of where he plays.

Carolina Hurricanes Sign Cavan Fitzgerald

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The Carolina Hurricanes have decided to reward Cavan Fitzgerald with an NHL deal, signing the minor league defenseman to a two-year, two-way contract. The contract will start next season and carries an average annual value of $750K in the NHL. Fitzgerald is playing this season on an AHL contract with the Chicago Wolves, serving as an alternate captain. Hurricanes GM Don Waddell released a short statement:

Cavan has had a great season in a leadership role with the Wolves. This signing helps solidify our defensive depth over the next couple seasons.

Fitzgerald, 24, wasn’t given a qualifying offer from the San Jose Sharks after the 2018-19 season and ended up signing with the Charlotte Checkers, then Carolina’s AHL affiliate. In 25 games last year he recorded five points and was brought back to serve in a leadership role once again. With nine points in 21 games for Chicago, he had a little bit better production but overall played a responsible two-way game.

Undrafted, Fitzgerald signed his entry-level deal with the Sharks in 2015 before he had even left junior hockey. The former QMJHL defenseman never did see any NHL action with the Sharks, playing two seasons for the San Jose Barracuda instead. Now with this second deal, he’ll not only get a chance at an NHL call-up but also secure minor league guarantees of $85K in 2021-22 and $90K in 2022-23.

Hurricanes Nearing Extension With Rod Brind’Amour

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Rod Brind’Amour’s contract situation in Carolina has been a discussion point for a good chunk of the season.  However, he appears to have his new deal in place as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that the bench boss has inked a three-year contract extension worth around $1.8MM per season.  The agreement comes on the three-year anniversary of his initial hiring to the position.  TSN’s Frank Seravalli somewhat contradicts that report (Twitter link), saying he was told by the team that the deal is not done yet.  Having said that, Friedman having the terms suggest it’s all but done at this point which he reiterated in a follow-up tweet following the denial.

Over that stretch, the Hurricanes have become a consistent threat.  The team made the playoffs in each of his first two seasons behind the bench after missing the postseason in nine straight years.  In his first year behind the bench, they made it to the Eastern Conference Final while they were ousted in the first round a year ago after being the Rangers in the Qualifying Round.

This season, Brind’Amour has helped take Carolina to a higher level.  Entering play today, the Hurricanes currently lead the league in points with 80 in 54 games, a pace of 121 over a full 82-game season.  They’ve clinched the Central Division title and are in the top ten in goals scored (eighth) and allowed (fourth) despite dealing with some key injuries up front and between the pipes as the presumptive starter at the beginning of the year in Petr Mrazek has only been able to play 11 times.

If the deal gets finalized at the terms that Friedman reported, it’s definitely a below-market price tag as veteran head coaches have been able to command twice that much or more in recent years.  While Brind’Amour – who has led Carolina to a 120-64-20 record – doesn’t have quite the track record that coaches like Mike Babcock, Alain Vigneault Claude Julien, Barry Trotz, Todd McLellan, and Peter Laviolette all had at the time of their hires (where they received at least $4MM), it stands to reason that he could have commanded considerably more had he hit the open market.  Instead, it appears he’s going to stay where he is and is willing to take a discount to do so which is great news for the Hurricanes.

Malmo Showing Interest In Carolina’s Joakim Ryan

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It has been a tough season for Hurricanes defenseman Joakim Ryan.  He cleared waivers in training camp and has spent the majority of the season on the taxi squad.  As a result, he has suited up just seven times this season, three with Carolina and four with AHL Chicago.  Not surprisingly, the pending unrestricted free agent is expected to head elsewhere for next season.

In this case, it appears that elsewhere may very well be in Sweden as SportExpressen’s Johan Svensson reports that Malmo of the SHL is in final negotiations to sign Ryan for next season although the deal wouldn’t officially be announced until Carolina’s playoffs come to an end.  Svensson qualifies his report by noting that a one-way NHL deal may be enough to sway Ryan to stay in North America although given how little he has played this season and the fact he already is on a two-way pact, that doesn’t seem likely to happen.

If this comes to fruition, it would be a homecoming of sorts for the 28-year-old who grew up just outside of Malmo until he was 12 when his family headed for the United States.  Several years ago, he indicated that he had a desire to play for Malmo although San Jose was able to get him to stay at that time before joining Los Angeles on a one-way deal back in 2019.

Between his time with those three organizations, Ryan has played in 144 career NHL games over four seasons but aside from his first year with the Sharks, he never has truly been able to establish himself as a regular player.  Accordingly, heading overseas would certainly make a lot of sense for him, especially if he can wind up close to home.

Max McCormick Clears Waivers

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Saturday: As expected given the lack of upside to making a claim, McCormick has safely cleared waivers, reports Hurricanes beat writer Michael Smith. The Central Division leaders will get some cap relief in the final days of the regular season while retaining the depth forward for their playoff run.

Friday: You don’t often see players placed on waivers after the trade deadline, as roster limits are lifted and teams can carry everyone they need. In today’s cap world though, there are sometimes situations that require a team to move a player down even after the deadline has passed. That’s what has happened with the Carolina Hurricanes today, who have placed Max McCormick on waivers to create some roster flexibility.

As CapFriendly points out, the rules for waiver claims after the deadline are slightly adjusted, meaning McCormick could not play for a team that claims him. If someone did claim him, it would essentially end his season, which doesn’t benefit his new team very much. Still, there is at least a slight possibility that a team would claim McCormick simply to remove him as an option for the Hurricanes as they head into the postseason. An unrestricted free agent at season’s end, there would be no real risk other than upsetting a fellow management team.

It’s a tough spot for McCormick, 29, who has played in ten games this season for Carolina. The former Ottawa Senators forward has two goals in those appearances, spending more time on the taxi squad than on any active roster.

Coaching Notes: Tocchet, Green, Brind’Amour

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It seems that Rick Tocchet’s days as the head coach of the Arizona Coyotes could be numbered. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that there is growing speculation that Tocchet and the ’Yotes will part ways this off-season. Tocchet’s contract expires at the end of the season and Dreger does not believe that it will be extended. If not for the NHL’s expanded playoff structure last season, Tocchet would have failed to make the playoffs in each of his four seasons as the bench boss in Arizona. The team was statistically eliminated from contention this season with last night’s loss to the Los Angeles Kings, marking the end of what at one time looked like a promising playoff push. However, this is the third consecutive season that the ’Yotes have remained in the playoff picture until the very end of the season. Last year, it earned them a play-in series berth which the team turned into an upset win over the Nashville Predators and a first-round match-up with the Colorado Avalanche. Considering that Tocchet took over a team that finished last in the Pacific Division in his first season, three years of fringe contention and a play-in series win is far from failure for the veteran coach. Dreger does not definitively state that the separation is a unilateral decision by Arizona and it could be that this is an amicable breakup coming between Tocchet and the team. A highly-regarded assistant with the Pittsburgh Penguins before joining the Coyotes, Tocchet should have no problem finding a job this summer and it could be that both sides equally want a fresh start.

  • Vancouver Canucks head coach Travis Green is still waiting for his contract extension. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that a resolution is expected to come before the end of the season – which for the Canucks is still almost two weeks away – but he adds that there has not been any change to the status quo of late. Green, like Tocchet, took over a struggling team in 2017-18 and has improved the group, including finishing third in the Pacific Division last season and advancing to the second round of the playoffs. While the current campaign has not gone as planned, with Vancouver on the verge of statistical elimination even with a number of games in hand on their North Division competitors, the organization is happy with Green and LeBrun notes that there continues to be mutual interest in a new multi-year deal. With that said, Green is among the bottom-third of coaches in terms of compensation and is seeking a raise, but LeBrun reports that the Canucks have not improved their offer recently. If the two sides truly want to get a deal done before the end of the regular season, they need to get to work.
  • Rod Brind’Amour is another coach who is awaiting a contract extension and there is little doubt that the leader of the President’s Trophy favorites will get a new, long-term deal. However, Dreger notes that the Hurricanes want to get the new deal done before the postseason, which leaves little time to work out the details. Brind’Amour has previously stated that he wants all of his fellow coaches and support staff to also have new deals finalized before he inks his own deal, so the Carolina Hurricanes have a number of negotiations to complete over the next week or two.

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